This is a bit of our story from our Pastor....
In April 2014, I was enjoying life as the senior pastor of NewCommunity Church in Glendora, CA with amazing leaders and community. I loved our church (still do love the people!). I was blessed and content. Then Jesus spoke to me in a dream. He took my wife and I to St. Louis, under the arch, and said, "This is your city". The compassion of Jesus overwhelmed me as I began to weep and declare God's unfailing love over my city. I awoke and the Lord continued to speak to me and show me what He envisioned to do through this ministry. We passed NewCommunity to amazing leaders and it is thriving (visit Thrive Glendora).
In April 2016, we left SoCal, close friends and family, comfort-zones, In-N-Out, the suburbs, and the beach. We have been stretched in our faith, in our emotions, in our energy. I feel like we stepped out on water and are still out of the boat every day!
In October 2016, we started the church with a team of 12 adults in the heart of the city of St. Louis. We are a campus of The Rock (a multi-campus church originating in Anaheim, CA under Pastors Jerry and Kimberly Dirmann with almost 20 congregations in at least 4 languages). We are so humbled and thankful for the covering, support, wisdom, and partnership of The Rock and our Foursquare Tribe.
Our church has grown just like Jesus told me. We are seeing people return to the Lord, grow in faith, and be healed. I love it! We love getting into the community to serve and do outreach. The church is diverse just like Jesus told me. After a few months, one leader noted to me, "Our church is made up of people from almost every continent!". Well, not Antarctica or Australia, but we are moving in the right direction. It has been slow and trying many times (especially during ice storms), but it is always worth it to obey Jesus and love people.
God has provided every need of our church and my family thus far. A friend recently asked me, "What is the best thing about the church plant?" Among all the testimonies and all the new members I adore, my family is still the greatest highlight. I have watched Michele blossom in her leadership, my kids witness the hand of God, and the Lord unite our hearts in a deeper way. So many Christians play it safe and insulate their children (really hide from their calling behind their children). But we were born for adventure; our kids long for the danger of doing something eternal.
On July 1, 2018 our church moved to a new location at 1911 Cherokee St. Once again, the Lord has answered prayer. He has directed our steps to the right location for us at this time. Our team is super excited, full of expectation, focused on the vision, and moved with compassion for people. My greatest joy is serving people with a team of like-mind leaders full of faith, love, humility, passion, and devotion. The Lord has provided this team and the resources we need thus far. After our strategic planning meeting a month before our launch, a shout of praise and roar of intercession exploded spontaneously from the team--I was thrilled by their faith!
Our heart is that you and everyone that comes feels warmly welcomed and “at home”, encounters the presences of God, and hears a word from God through His word. We are deeply committed to mentoring young people into Kingdom leaders as well. We have classes for kids during our services so they can encounter God in an age-appropriate, safe, and fun environment. We don’t do “babysitting”; we invest in our kids.
Our mission is to Build Solid Lives. It is our heartbeat, our war cry, our visionary focus, our strategic compass. Our passion is to see people made whole, empowered to become all they were created for, fulfilling their purpose, living in the blessing of God, and serving others in the fullness of the Holy Spirit. We know this only happens through Jesus indwelling us, by the teaching of His Word and the power of the Spirit.
We see a church full of people who have been rescue and healed—people from different cultures and countries, classes and colors united in faith, hope and love. We see destinies reclaimed and whole families restored! We see a people who know their God, worship with passionate love for Jesus, pray with authority, show honor to all, serve with humility, walk in the Spirit in their daily lives, and influence our city and region. We see a city full of God’s word and joy. We see campuses spread out over the St. Louis city and region, bringing discipleship and community impact everywhere we are.
I hope you will join our family on mission. See you Sunday--we meet at 10:15AM CST on campus and online.
--Pastor David